


Stick-In-The-Mud

by ToTheMax



Series: Rowan's October Challenge [6]
Category: Set It Off (Band)
Genre: Big ol angst fest, Gen, angst with no happy endings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-08
Updated: 2018-10-08
Packaged: 2019-07-28 03:38:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,466
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16233446
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ToTheMax/pseuds/ToTheMax
Summary: Maxx heads face-to-face with a creature the monster calls his buddy. It doesn't end well.





	Stick-In-The-Mud

**Author's Note:**

> If ur reading this is order, u know the drill
> 
> If u r reading this out of random, hello u might wanna go to the beginning of the story to get an idea as to what's happening. This is a continuation of the previous work in this series

“Are you ready, buddy?”

_ No. And I'm not your buddy. _

“Too bad. Let's see how much exposure you can hold out.”

Maxx didn't know what the monster meant. It was making him trudge along the woods a few miles away (while walking all the time. It told him to, “quit being a pissbaby and keep moving.”) while humming a tune he didn't recognize. He had also had a wardrobe change. From his old, bloodstained clothes (which the blood had coagulated and turned brown), he now donned a much happier Hawaiian shirt he didn't even know he had with one of his muscle shirts underneath, along with a new pair of shredded jeans. The monster just the holes.

“Where are you?” the monster sang to the tune of his song. “I'm here and you know me! I bet you're looking for Evan, huh?”

_ Evan? You're possessing other people now? _

“Oh, I've been fucking with Evan for a while. He's a  _ real  _ fun one. I've seen him since he was a little squirt killing rabbits in the garden.” The monster grinned wider and laughed. “ _ God,  _ that guy’s fun. His buddies, too.”

Finally, he stopped. His legs ached terribly, his cheeks stung from smiling so much and every shift of weight made him want to break his own legs.  _ Not really,  _ he quickly told the monster when it raised the machete.

“There he is!” the monster cheered happily, raising his arms in a  _ welcome to the party!  _ gesture. Maxx had to strain to see, but he was sure one of those trees was black and white. “Ready? Here's your test.” 

The monster left his body. The world felt awkward without the tint of purple, but the first thing he did was crumble to his knees.  _ God,  _ he needed rest. He needed to be back home to sleep. He looked up and saw that the black tree had gotten closer.

He now realized it was a man. A very tall, thin man with arms like branches. No, those aren't his arms.  _ More appendages? What is this thing?  _ When it shifted closer, he didn't see a face. 

Right as he was about to speak, a high pitched, squealing screamed in his ears. He jammed his hands over his ears, bent his head to the floor but the sound didn't cease. It was like it was in his head, a parasite that needed to be torn out.

Maxx looked up, and he was at the man’s feet. He did know if it was shoes he was wearing, or if it was a part of his skin. The screaming stopped, only for a moment. In that moment, he felt something wet trickle down his ears. He drew his hands away and saw crimson blood staining both of them.

The screaming started again, this time at a lower frequency. He closed his eyes and all he saw was spots, lines. White snow. TV static.

His breath hitched, and he started to cough. Uncontrollable, he forced out all the air in his lungs, getting barely a fraction of air back. He was sure his face was red, his eyes felt like they were going to explode.

He felt something hit the back of his throat, and next thing he knew he was hacking up blood. The static screaming didn't stop. 

His stomach was roaring with everything he barely forced down his throat the last few hours, and all of it came up in a bloody, sticky mess at the thing’s feet. A little bit got on its shoes, and it actually stepped back a bit. Maxx didn't think it could actually move.

His brain was foggy, his vision was going black. When he tried to stand, his legs gave out under his weight and he collapsed backwards in the hard dirt and fallen leaves.

When he came to, he was home. His head throbbed like crazy, and the monster had already possessed him. They were in the bathroom. That bloodstained, rotting bathroom that still held the neighbor’s and Awsten’s body. But, it was looking in the mirror. He had large bags around his eyes so heavy they looked black. His nose and ears were stained with blood, as well as a trail of it down his mouth. His skin was so pale, it reminded him of the faceless thing the monster made him look at.

Max breathed in slowly. His ribs sparked with pain, indicating that they might be broken. He would need a hospital, but no way would the monster let him.

“Why don't you get some sleep?” the monster asked, “Go on. I'll let you sleep as long as you need.” It sounded genuine. No raspy growl, no condescending undertone. Genuinely worried. That's what scared him. 

Maxx just found his way to his bed and laid down. “Ten minutes,” the monster said. “It might not have felt like it, by you lasted ten minutes before you passed out. That's more than anyone else I've seen can say. Though that Tim guy from a few years back… stood right up to him and spat in his face. His buddy was down in five seconds, though.” It laughed, and Maxx just sighed, annoyed.

He buried his face into his pillow, reaching his arm to the other side of the bed, just like he always did to wrap an arm around Awsten. It took a moment for him to realize he was alone. Before he could stop them, tears escaped his eyes, a sob shaking his whole body and burning his ribs. His outstretched arm stayed there, his hand curled into a soft fist under the other pillow. 

If he imagined hard enough, Awsten was in the bed with him. Curled up with his face pressed into his neck, his arms lightly holding onto his hair. Maxx could feel the warmth, just for a moment.

He felt happy, just for a moment.

\--

When he woke up next, it was night. The monster wasn't een taking control of him. “I'm giving you a break to recharge,” the monster said, “I can't have a host with broken ribs. So, have a few weeks off. But it's not like you can go outside like that.”

Great. Even when he wasn't possessing him, he was ruining his life. He sat up, now realizing he probably hasn't eaten in days. He stumbled to the kitchen, glad to see he had some cereal. He didn't feel like making a bowl, so he just took the box and went back to his room to eat. He finished the entire box, he was so hungry.

It was weeks on weeks of slowly going crazy by himself. Once or twice, he thought about offing himself, but the monster stopped him before he could do it. “I still need you,” it would say, “I don't need you killing yourself. I need you alive.”

“Fuck you,” Maxx spat.

The monster cackled, and his vision swarmed with a familiar purple tint. “Oh, my god! Deja vu, right? I  _ just  _ had this conversation a few months ago! I guess it won't matter if I repeat it again,” his own voice rasped. The monster made him sit on his bed. “So, let's talk. Do you know why you said that?”

_ Why do you need to know? _

“Why did you say that? ‘Fuck you.’ It's a simple curse, everybody says it. Do you know why you did?”

Maxx didn't respond.

“Was it spite? Were you just trying to spit in my eye? Get your foot in the door, is that it? Trying to fight back, trying to-to just get one good lick in?”

Again, Maxx was silent inside.

“Let me tell you a story, Maxxy.” The monster made him sit back, gesturing with his hands. “So, way back back, I got this one guy in a corner. His leg’s off, I'm holding it in front of him, he's spilling guts all over the place. So you know what he says? He says, ‘Fuck you! I hate you, fuck you!’”

_ Big mood,  _ Maxx finally says.

“Anyway,” the monster continues, as if it didn't hear, “I still don't know why he said that. Like, did he think I would care? Did he think those two words, that  _ everybody  _ has said to me, would make me stop and reconsider my actions? Oh no, I'm a prey I hurt your feelings! Let's all hold hands and sing around the campfire!”

Maxx was quiet again. He didn't think of it like that.

“Nobody does. So, I'm gonna ask you what I asked Jeff, and I better get an answer. When a pig squeals before it's slaughtered, does the butcher care?”

_ I suppose not. _

“Exactly. Some of them even love it when they scream. So, thanks. Fuck you too.”

And just like that, he was alone again.


End file.
